Women in Wwii

Women and their Involvement in World War II Women had a huge role in the World War II that so many do not recognize. Women were involved in many different jobs that allowed them to step out of the ordinary norm as the “typical housewife”, and dive into fierce hardworking jobs that until then only a man could do. Women jumped into the factories and many different roles that contributed to World War II, because the need for more American workers was crucial.

Women in the Workforce: From World War II to Present Undeniably, the outlook of women in the workforce changed following the advent of World War II. Traditionally, the role of caretaker of the house and home was assigned to the woman. Society and institutions facilitated, accepted and supported this way of

One of the most important roles that women played, were the increasing large amount of female soldiers fighting in the war. These roles gave women the right to work and serve in armed forces. The jobs that women took part in during this time period made a huge difference in the war, and in turn, WW2 helped expand women’s

The country had no choice but to have the women in the factories. They needed their help and were not going to complain about it. They knew with extra hands that, that was going to be an easier way to win the war. The government called on to the women and without hesitation, they went. They answered to whatever work that needed to be done. They worked a 52 hour week at 68 cents per hour. They were all prepared and knew that their “summer jobs” would end soon. There work dominated their nights and days. Most of their work was outdoors as well. Even though some women would much rather be at home helping there families other ways they still managed to get their other job complete as well.

During the Second World War, both married and unmarried women worked in wartime industries and factories to take the place of men who joined the service. Although women didn’t play a significant role on the battlefields in Europe compared to males, it would be logical to conclude that women played an integral role in the participation and victory in WWII both at home and abroad. Yet when one considers their contribution, it is hard to imagine how much more they could have done given the conservative views of gender role at that time. In the context of traditional gender roles and boundaries, women conceivably maximized their wartime efforts by working in a variety of jobs including industry, volunteering, and serving as support staff for

D2, B2 • With so many men away fighting in the war, women were eventually given the chance to work in men’s roles.

The lives of American women changed with the presence of new job opportunities. Previous to this time in history, women were given jobs that seemed traditional. For instance, housewives and those who take care of domestic affairs. However, soon after America’s entry to WWII, this began to change. It was

American Women Prior to WWII, American women would typically stay home. They cooked and cleaned, but all this soon changed. Once the U.S. officially entered World War II on December 7, 1941, following Pearl Harbor, many men were sent to fight. Since men were the main workforce, there was a lack of employees to complete the jobs left behind. Soon, however, these vacant spots would be replenished by a female workforce. Companies sent out propaganda in an attempt to convince women to work in previously “male” jobs. One such propaganda was “Rosie the Riveter”. Eventually, the amount of women working increased from 27% to 37%, and sixty-five percent of the aircraft industry was made up of women, by 1943. (History.com, American Women in World War II).Now, women not only worked at home, but on the battlefield as well. Approximately 350,000 women enrolled in the Armed Forces, and 100,00 became WACS(Women’s Army Corps). Nevertheless, these women at work, on the battlefield or at home, were not paid the same amount of money as the men who previously worked in these jobs. (History.com, American Women in World War II).

During World War 1, women were granted numerous opportunities. Women were assisting all types of doctors, serving as nurses, ambulance drivers, cell phone operators, and correspondents (CITE). They were grateful to be included in military tasks because they wanted to provide assistance to the United States in crisis. Hence, if we evaluate the numerous professions women are in today, women are in unprecedented professions, such as CEO’s, doctors, lawyers, mathematicians, and

workers played a vital role in creating war-related materials. Enormous quantities of airplanes, tanks, warships, rifles, and other armaments were essential to beating America’s aggressors (“The U.S. Homefront”). Most of the workers were women. With many of men going into battle, women began securing jobs as welders, electricians, and riveters in defense plants (“The U.S. Homefront”). Until that time, most of those jobs were strictly for men only (“The U.S. Homefront”). Women’s pay was still much less even with women taking men’s jobs during the war.

The World War II soon changed the role of women. Women were allowed to do jobs in the military, and did the men’s work in higher careers. They tried to fight with their freedom and proved their responsibilities to the public. The idea that a great number of women worked in place of the men who had gone to war was resisted for a number of reasons. This resistance

In 1944, women were accused of not doing anything for World War II (Weatherford 238). Nevertheless, Rosie the Riveter was a symbol for all working women during the war. After Rosie was used to bring women into the workplace, women gained strength by being in a group (Bailey 85, Weatherford 235). Although women were discriminated against during World War II, their skills in volunteering, constructing planes, ship building, working in war plants, and farming were said to be essential to winning the war (Bailey 90).

By 1943, housewife workers outnumbered single workers for the first time in history.Throughout the war women went to work in shipyards, aircraft plants and other assembly lines. They also loaded shells, operated cranes, painted ships. Many of them became welders, bus drivers, train conductors, mechanics, bellhops, nurses and day-care providers. Women comprised a third of the workers in aircraft plants and about 10 percent of the workers at the shipyards and steel mills were women. Although most war work was in factories, many women found work elsewhere. Many became secretaries and clerks in Washington D.C. and more than 200,000 women entered the special branches of the military. Such branches include Women’s Army Corp (WAC), Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service (WAVES), and Women’s Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron (WAFS). These military positions allowed women to take over tasks for soldiers so they could be free to go to combat. Although women participated in jobs extremely similar to men, they were not treated equally. For the long hour’s women put in, their salaries averaged only 60 percent of men’s. However, the greatest struggle for American women throughout the war was not simply the issue of money.

During the war in the 1940s, an aggressive media campaign urged more than six million women into the workforce. It is astonishing seeing each year; there were better accomplishments that women were making. Many learned new techniques such as working in steel plants, shipyards, and lumber mills. Sports also became a new and admired era in this time. The famous “Rosie the Riveter”, “We Can Do It!” was a part of the governor campaign that brought women into the workplace during the war. Following the end of WWII, most of these jobs went back to the men, and women were encouraged to either return back home or find a “female” job. This reveals that women were used. They were only needed when most of the men were in the war. In

World War II was the first time that women were greatly encouraged to join the workforce. Nearly 6 million women took industrial jobs such as steel plants, shipyards, and lumber mills at the urging of the government and media (“Women of the Century”). Because the men were away fighting in